Amer Abdullah is the boxing director at Skill Challenge Entertainment (SCEE), which is owned by Prince Khalid bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia.

Last week, Abdullah sat down with Arab News in Dubai to discuss a number of topics, including the development of boxing in Saudi Arabia, his take on some of the potential biggest fights held in the kingdom, the schedules for those fights, and some updates. On boxers is recommended.

For people who don’t know much about boxing in Saudi Arabia, can you describe your intentions to develop a boxing culture in the Kingdom?

We want to start with the popular movement, and that was part of Prince Khaled’s vision, to bring boxing back to the kingdom and start building it from the bottom up. We will start integrating training camps, not only for the fighters, but also for the trainers so that they can teach the fighters.

But you are only as good as the best guy in the gym, so we also want to bring established fighters, experienced fighters and world champion fighters to host their training camps in the kingdom, to train in the kingdom. We can bring in those trainers, bring in those fighters and see how these champions train.

The next generation can design after that. They start repeating those movements, they start to see things and they start to develop themselves.

You know, insight education is everything. To be able to actually see it, rather than just hear it.

Combat sports have really taken off in the Middle East over the past few years. What do you think are the reasons for this?

I think we all love combat sports, not just in the Middle East. Everyone loves a good fight.

There is nothing like the best fighter in the world fighting the second best fighter in the world to see who is the best. There is no such thing if it is good construction and good marketing.

I mean, look at the numbers Floyd did vs. Manny Pacquiao. It was unbelievable because it was on the grounds that it was two of the best players in the world fighting each other. The next biggest was what Floyd vs. Conor McGregor was, MMA’s greatest fighter vs. greatest boxer.

For a thoroughbred boxer, you knew this wasn’t going to be a tough fight for Floyd – but it was entertaining. And who better than Connor to sell a fight? Phenomenal act. He did a great job fighting.

Everyone ended up winning that fight. And that’s really kind of the premise of what we’re doing now; You build it, you put eyeballs on it, you build the grassroots, you build your horizons, you build the players that are already there, and then you bring in the big players and bring them together.

How do you see the development of women’s boxing in Saudi Arabia?

We’re looking forward to being able to sign a Saudi woman and start building her into the show as well. To have a world champion – imagine how nice it is to get out of the zone.

Are we any closer to an undisputed battle between Tyson Fury and Alexander Usyk for all the heavyweight belts in the kingdom?

We’re very close and I think those guys are going to get their bids very soon.

I think both men want to fight. I definitely know the promoters want the fight, you know, the fighters in the driving seat. They make the final decision. I can’t imagine that these guys, setting everything straight – finances, timing, legacy – wouldn’t want a fight like that to happen.

What is the likely timeframe for the fury fight against Usyk in Saudi Arabia?

I think January or February. I think this is probably where it will end up. Prince Khalid will make this decision with the support of the Ministry of Sports.

Congratulations on reaching an agreement for a fight between Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder that will take place in Saudi Arabia. There has been a lot of talk about this fight happening over the past few years, but it never happened.

Eddie Hearn is very ambitious about it. I know Shelly Finkel is very ambitious about this. Al-Haymoon is on board. So everyone wants that fight to happen. The fighters want that to happen. The terms are very reasonable and very fair. They are very generous and the timing makes sense. Now we’re just putting the sheets in place and that’s when it’s done. But, even then, it’s not over yet. Until the press release comes from the skills challenge shows, it’s all just lip service.

Aside from the huge heavyweight fights you’ve been working on, what other stars in other weight divisions are you hoping to fight in Saudi Arabia?

Boxing is in great shape. You have a very common section that’s 135 pounds, and you have a very popular section that’s 140 pounds. Super middleweights are sexy. Weights are sexy. We now have cruiser weights getting sexy for the first time in a long time. There are a lot of great fights to be had, and we’re looking at all of that.

We’re looking at everything and we’re looking forward to bringing a lot of key players into the kingdom and we’re already in talks with a lot of them. There will be some very exciting things coming out of Saudi Arabia.

When do you see Badou Jack fight next?

Most guys his age want to fight once or twice a year, but Badou wants to fight three or four times a year. He wants to stay active. The more active you see him, the better.

He is 39 years old, but he is 39 years old. He doesn’t have much wear and tear, and takes great care of himself between camps. He was pushing to do something in the summer and I told him he should back off, maybe sometime in the fall. So we’re looking at sometime in the fall or early winter to bring it back up again.

Mohsen Casson is an upcoming cruiserweight prospect. Known as “themuslimboxer” on social media channels, he has built up a huge following online. Can we see him fight in Saudi Arabia again?

We would love to have you with us. He put in an impressive performance on the last Badou Jack card, which was the Jake Paul vs. Tommy Fury “The Truth” event where he was knocked out in the first round.

He has a lot of talents. He is likely to fight on an upcoming card in August; Big theater for him. It has no limits now.

He’s a potential person with a lot of potential, a lot of talent. And now this massive social media presence has grown to be called the “Muslim Boxer”, which really launched his fame; His presence is not only in boxing, but in the world of social media as well.

The kid is very talented, well-spoken, good-looking, can really fight and has a large Muslim following. He will be the one to keep your eyes on.

What can we expect in the coming months from Skill Challenge Entertainment?

My goal is to run shows from the Skills Challenge in October, November, December and January, and those shows are being put in place now.